Currently Untitled
by butyousaidforeverandalways
Summary: //FAX// anyway, i already know this story probably sucks, so read it anyway. Faxness.
1. Shopping

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Maximum Ride. I also don't own malls. Or food courts. Or Victoria's Secrets or Abercrombies.**

This is my first fic, please review!!

**Max POV**

_Ugh, _I thought, _why did I ever agree to this?_

Nudge had (correctly) assumed that we needed new clothes-badly.

"C'mon, Max, pretty please with a cherry and fudge and Eraser guts even though that's gross and marshmallows and-"

"Nudge. Shut. Up." Iggy frowned.

We landed near the back of a large strip mall, and the Nudge Channel came back from its short commercial break.

"Max, we should go to Victoria's Secret." At that point, Gazzy made a face and Fang shed his mask for two seconds and smiled. "Because I need new bras and underwear, and I guess you do too." Gazzy's face turned green and Fang and Iggy started full-out chuckling. Angel just smiled, and Total said nothing, but I heard snoring from inside my backpack. I hoped he wouldn't drool.

Nudge blushed. "Well, maybe the boys can go to Abercrombie, but then I'd want to go too, because I saw a billboard that said that the WHOLE ENTIRE STORE was having a sale and we should go because you have a credit card and mmmphh!"

I glanced at Nudge and saw that Fang's hand was over her mouth.

I sighed, and we entered the mall.

The first thing we saw was the food court, and being the half-starved bird kids we are, we all ran to separate stand things. **(A/N I have no idea what you call those places :D) **Angel, Fang and I ended up at Sbarro, Iggy and Nudge were at some Chinese place, and Gazzy was at Taco Bell. I hoped he wouldn't order anything with beans in it.

"That would be gross." Angel agreed. "The sky would smell bad."

Fang gave me a what-the-hell-are-you-two-talking-about look and Angel and I broke out laughing.

After we ordered all the food court has to offer, (literally, I saw the three stands turn their signs to "Closed") we dug in. Gazzy had ordered _eight _bean burritos. Oh, man.

When I was stuffed, we went shopping. I went to Victoria's Secret with Nudge, and as soon as the store was in sight, she ran in, squealing, grabbed random clothes, and went inside a dressing room. I yawned and tried to interest myself by trying to fit a DD-cup bra on my head. (It was actually really fun. I went to the mirror and took a mental picture for Angel.)

Just then, I had one of those gut-feeling moments where you think someone's behind you. I mentally wished, _please be Nudge, please be Nudge, _before I turned around.

Of course, Nudge was still in the dressing room, and I was face-to face with twenty Erasers.


	2. HELP!

**Disclaimer: If I owned Maximum Ride, would I still be writing fanfics? No.**

**Fang POV**

I hated to admit it, but I was actually having _fun._ Iggy, Gazzy, Angel (so Total was there too) and I were coming out of Children's Place with two bags containing 2 new pink shirts and pink cargo pants for Angel, and 2 shirts and 2 new pairs of camo pants for Gazzy that looked very much like the ones he was already wearing.

Seeing as we didn't have the credit card, Angel "convinced" the clerk that the ripped-up piece of paper she was holding was a coupon. Hey, we gotta do what we gotta do.

Now we walked into Abercrombie, which smelled strongly of perfume and was SO FREAKING LOUD. I glanced at Iggy and saw him cover his ears in disgust. Well, at least with the one hand that wasn't holding the hem of my shirt. **(A/N whoops, I forgot the "r" in shirt. But then I saw it, thank goodness. :D) **I picked a nice pair of black jeans, another nice pair of black jeans, and found a slimmer pair in the women's section for Max. Angel smiled once she figured out what I was doing.

Then her eyes unfocused, she frowned, and said three words.

"Max needs help."

I tapped the back of Iggy's hand twice, still holding the jeans, and got the heck out of there.


	3. Fight!

**Hey, I don't really like short chapters either.**

**Oh well.**

**Disclaimer: I think you get the point.**

**But I don't want to get kicked off FF.**

**That's a lot of f's in a row. FFFF :D**

**Fang POV **

I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, down the up escalator (Thankfully, it was empty) and into Victoria's Secret.

Normally the sight of all those bras would've made me cringe (or I would've at least imagined Max in them [I never said that, if you tell Max I said that I will HUNT YOU DOWN]) but the sight of all those Erasers encircling Max distracted me. She had a split lip and several bruises, though she was already bruised when we went to the mall. Rage filled me at the sight of my girl (where the hell did that come from?) being attacked. I regretted letting Nudge convince Max to let us come, and joined in the fight.

Several kicked Eraser butts later, Nudge came running out of the dressing room wearing only a tank top and a pair of sweatpants with the tag still on them, and helped us take down the last of the Erasers. We all took a moment to catch out breath and finally, Max spoke with that beautiful voice of hers.

"Well you just couldn't stay away could you Fang?"

"Never," I replied, as I drew her close to me and our lips touched.

Soon our kiss became a full make-out session, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Nudge's jaw hit the floor. (Well, you know what I mean.) My lips tugged up to my ears and I smiled, the biggest I remember smiling in a long time.

Too soon, I remembered the rest of the flock, and ended the kiss. We were both breathing a little hard, but Max's face was lit up, and we held hands as we headed back to Abercrombie and Nudge chattered away.

"Well everyone knew you two liked each other, except maybe you guys, but OMGOMGOMG!!!! THAT WAS AWESOME!!!" Nudge was squealing at this point, and several strangers were giving her looks. Max noticed the three pairs of jeans in my hand, and looked at the third pair questioningly.

"Um, Fang, don't these look a little… small?" Max grinned as she realized who they were for.

We walked back into too-strong-smelling, too-loud Abercrombie as Max hurried off to try on the jeans, and I walked toward where I had left the flock. Angel smiled at me, and I was dismayed that she was in my mind again.

_I'm sorry, _Angel pushed the thought into my head. _You just looked so… happy._

I smiled as I realized that last year, me looking happy would've been out of the question.

"Uh, Fang?" Max had come out of the dressing room, wearing her perfectly fitted jeans, and looked at me with mock concern. "You're showing emotion. You okay?"

And the flock broke out in laughter as we walked out of the store, realizing that we hadn't paid for anything in Abercrombie.


	4. Billy Bob Joe

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Maximum Ride.**

**I also do not own the phrase "Hello hello my duckies! :D" That belongs to Hiwatari-Angel-15 aka Uzumaki-Angel 15.**

**Read her story "Bloodlust." It's calling yoooooooohhh…… :D**

**Max POV**

We stayed in a hotel that night, courtesy of the MR card, and our backup source, Ang- I mean *cough* cash. Unfortunately, this was the only hotel around for miles, and there were only three rooms left. Oh, man.

I held out room cards. "Guess we're pairing up, guys. Pick a card, any card." I inwardly smiled at my own joke.

Iggy walked past me and took a card. How does he do that? "C'mon, Gazzy, lets blow u—I mean, take a shower."

"OOOOHHH!!!" Nudge squealed. "Angel, we can room together!!! We can talk about fashion and Zac Efron and braid Total's hair and—" Nudge's voice faded away as she took a card and went down the hall, holding Angel's hand.

Oh-kay. This left me and… I glanced at the armchair near the desk, and saw nothing. Fang?!

He must've known I was panicking, because when I felt the prickle on the back of my neck and I whirled around, Fang was smirking.

"Guess we're roomies," Fang said with suppressed laughter in every word. I huffed, trying to conceal the sound of my quickening heartbeat, and went to the hated claustrophobic elevator with the quietest person on Earth.

When we got to our room, I was pleased to find that our rooms were all connected, and that there was a nice bed and—

_WHAT? _A nice _bed? _Notice the lack of an "s" signifying the plural.

I grabbed my bag, ran to the bathroom and started up the water to hide the fact that I was embarrassed (and also secretly thrilled, wait WHAT AM I SAYING?!) stripped, and took a shower.

When I was done and changed, I wrapped my wet hair in a towel, grabbed one from the closet for Fang, and headed outside.

I threw Fang a towel. "Your turn." I tried as hard as I could to make it sound casual, but I was really hoping that Fang would come out of the bathroom shirtless or something. Mmm.

I noticed bull riding was on TV. Woah. Awesome. I really did like puny humans riding so-called "fierce" animals. TV Network should really look into my email about "Eraser-riding." That would be fun.

Before I knew it, I was jumping on the bed cheering for "Billy Bob Joe."

"Oh YEAH! Ride that bull! YEAH!!"

I saw a flash of black from the corner of my eye, and sure enough, there was Fang. Crud, I had a feeling he wasn't gonna let me live this one down.

"How much of that did you just see?" I asked cautiously.

"Enough to make me laugh." Fang, like, doesn't laugh. So he must've seen a _lot._

"That's it." I muttered, though I was smiling. And without a warning, I tackled Fang.


	5. wrestling and kissyfaces

**All right, this is the last of my prewritten chapters…**

**OH NO!!!**

**Almost forgot the disclaimer there… so HA meanie butts!!!**

**I don't own Max Ride, blah blah blah.**

**Oh, and questions, comments, concerns, criticisms?**

**PM me!!!**

**UPDATE: ahaha, this story is dedicated to JonasBabe12 **

**Fang POV**

I sighed. Sometimes Max was so… flighty. (Pun intended.) Why couldn't she just accept that we were meant to be?

Woah, I have been watching way too much Oprah lately. I turned on the TV and booted up my laptop. Oprah. Great. I grabbed the remote and the TV Guide, and finally gave up and hit random numbers. Bull-riding. Cool. I updated my blog and watched countless "brave" guys get thrown off bulls. My mind wandered to the School, and bull-human hybrids. That would be awesome…

Max finally came out of the shower, her sometimes-blonde-sometimes-brown hair dripping. She threw me a towel. "Your turn." I got my new jeans and my new black t-shirt **(A/N: shirt has an "r" in it.) **and headed into the shower.

When I came out, fully changed, I saw Max jumping on the bed erratically and cheering for one of those bull-riding guys, who apparently was the world champion. I used my invisibility and crossed the room silently, Max still being crazy on the bed. I tried to cross my arms and look as carefree as possible, and "materialized" in the corner of the room.

Max saw me; face frozen in shock, and nearly fell off the bed.

I was holding in laughter. Gosh, so much _emotion_ lately... I was becoming so un-Fang-ish.

"Hey," I said, sticking to my usual one-word sentences.

"Fang… how much of that did you just see?" Max was making a face.

"Enough to make me laugh," I said truthfully.

"That's it," Max said, smiling. And she tackled me.

Now you may think willowy, slender, ninety-seven pound Max would be no match for tall, muscular, (very good looking) one-hundred-and-fifty pound me, but the truth is, I swear half of Max's weight is muscle. We wrestled, with the intention of hurting, but only a little.

Suddenly, I heard giggling. "I think they're going to kiss!" Four figures disappeared behind our slightly open doorframe. Damnit.

So, to suit their pleasures, for the second time that day, we kissed, almost as fierce and passionate as our wrestling match.

When we pulled away, Iggy was smirking, Gazzy looked disgusted, Angel and Nudge were grinning widely, and Total was muttering to himself about the values of love. When would he realize that long-distance relationships were a bad idea?

Whatever. I could get used to _this._


	6. Even more Shopping

**AAAAAHHHHH!!!**

**I'm typing as fast as I can, I swear!!!**

***huff huff***

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride. Or Fang's hotness. *drools***

**Max POV**

We went back to the mall that day, to buy more clothes, because I just _couldn't stand_ all of Nudge's "Oh, Max, pleezies? There's a YMCA across the street from the hotel! And we can go swimming!"

I agreed, on the condition that we DID NOT go back to Victoria's Secret, (that clerk lady turning into an Eraser was a lot to handle) and then did a 360 to check on my flock.

Angel was playing rock-paper-scissors with Gazzy. When would that boy learn it was impossible to beat a mind reader in rock-paper-scissors? I smiled to myself and felt a prickle on the back of my neck.

"Fang," I muttered only loud enough that he could hear me, "if you want to sneak up on me, then don't breathe." The eerie feeling left me, so I assumed he had gone, but then he reappeared right in front of me. I collided very, uh, _gracefully _with Fang and dropped several feet. I heard Iggy say, "Great, the lovebirds took a death dive."

I grimaced (and wondered, once again, how Ig even DOES that) as we touched down behind the strip mall. I blushed when I realized I was, quite by accident, in Fang's arms.

When we entered the mall, Fang immediately rushed off to Hot Topic to "buy this new Trapt tee shirt." **(Haha, great band, btw)** Whatever made him happy, I guess. I went with him, just for kicks.

Nudge and Iggy decided they'd take the kids to Gap, and then meet us at Aeropostale. Angel told me it would be okay, she would send mental pictures of all the outfits to Iggy.

But that's not what I was worried about.

I was worried about shopping for _clothes _with Fang, especially SWIMSUITS. Gahh. Nudge had asked me to buy her some stuff too, because she'd wanted to come with us, "not to spy or anything, that would be rude, just to watch in a not-rude way."

Fang slapped my back, and I reflexively hit him back. Hard.

"What was that for?" I said, a little too loud.

"You were frowning," he said, amused. "I wanted to see if your face would freeze like that." I was awestruck. Fang had spoken _two sentences—_in a ROW?!

We exited Hot Topic, (I had bought some glitter spray, for pranking purposes only) and stepped into Aeropostale. Not my kind of store. (Plus, I was sure Fang was smirking at the skimpy bikinis on display at the very front of the store.)

We split up, each keeping an eye on each other but trying to look inconspicuous. (Obviously enough, it didn't work.) I slid a glance over to the four-way mirror, where Fang was trying on swim trunks, (thank God they were not Speedos, though I can't say I would be disgusted, if you know what I mean) and Iggy and Gazzy were debating whether the Gasman looked better in blue or green.

"Green. Definitely." Iggy said.

"But I like BLUE! Besides, you don't even know what the green one looks like. You can just _feel it._"

I met up with Nudge and Angel, Angel carrying what looked like half her weight in shopping bags. I took the bags from her, she smiled at me, and I wondered if it was more than an impulse that had taken her load. **(A/N does that make sense?)**

I'd wanted to pick my own swimsuit, but sadly, Nudge had already picked for me.

I looked at the bikini, which looked like the skimpiest on the rack, and I hoped it would look less trampy on me than it did on the hanger. I also picked out a pair of khaki shorts, because how embarrassing would it be if we got in a fight with Erasers and my SWIM BOTTOMS fell down?!

I went to the dressing rooms, hoping that Fang would find me as attractive as I did him. (Wait, WHAT? I am turning into a lovestruck freak!!)

As I changed, I thought about Fang, and how it was a lot easier two or three years ago, when our relationship consisted of flying races and wrestling matches. (I'm just not gonna say who won.)

I came out of the dressing room in my bikini top and shorts, and if I might say so myself, I looked pretty dang good.

I hadn't seen myself in clean clothes in a while, much less a clean _swimsuit._

I grabbed a tank top, for similar reasons that I took the shorts, changed, paid, (No, Angel absolutely DID NOT give us a 99% discount) and met up with the flock outside the store. We exited the mall, and took off. We had probably gone three miles or so when I realized something…

When we went swimming, Fang _wasn't going to have a shirt on. _It took all of my self-control not to start hyperventilating on the spot.

I must have lost my self-control or something, because next thing I knew, I was falling. Fast.

**OH MAN!**


	7. Fang sings

**I don't own Max Ride. I also don't own Hero by Enrique Iglesias.**

**Fang POV**

_(Insert-swear-word-of-your-choice here.)_

Obviously enough, our little swimming trip was cancelled.

I flew down to where Max had fallen, bitter that I hadn't been able to catch her in time. She looked bruised up, but not bad. But she was shivering really, really violently.

"Oh, jeez," Iggy said as soon as he landed. "I can feel her heat from here." He waggled his fingers, which were an inch away from Max's beautiful face. (I never said that.)

_Okay, if you say so, _Angel always found the worst times to be in my head. Then I realized something. _Angel, can you tell me everything that happened from when we took off? _She consented and scrunched her cute little face up in concentration.

At first, everything seemed okay. She even giggled once. But then Angel paled. Oh, man. I braced myself as Angel sent me mental pictures.

First they were just innocent thoughts, about swimming, Nudge's motor mouth, how she needed to take Total back to Akila so he would stop grumbling, how much she loved me, how I would be shirtless, -- Woah. I tried to backtrack, but the images kept coming. I heard the Voice.

Maximum, it began. You need to focus on bigger things than your boyfriend, because a threat is coming, right about now. Then I felt the pain.

Searing, white-hot pain. Accompanied by images of people being tortured, people dying, dog crates, oh, this just got worse and worse.

Then I felt more pain; physical. This must have been when Max fell. I told Angel to please stop, and tried my best to treat Max's fever. I put on my emotionless mask, and gestured for Nudge and Gazzy to come over, since they looked as if they were both on the brink of tears. Heck, we were _all _on the brink of tears.

"Nudge, Gazzy," I said, trying out my best leader voice, "go find us some water." Nodding, they left, padding through the brush of this random forest.

I glanced over at Ig, who was looking even more worried. "What's up, man?" I asked weakly.

"Her pulse is really weak. Oh my God. It's gone. Her pulse is gone."

My mind seemed to shut down, and all I could think of was some TV special that taught CPR. I was like a machine, not thinking, just going, and hoping I had listened properly.

_Check for breaths. None._

_Rescue breaths-One, two._

_Hands in the center of the chest, push one, two, three, four, five…_

_Head tilt, chin lift, pinch the nose, breathe once, and exhale. Twice, exhale._

_Hands in the center of the chest, second time, two, two, three, four, five…_

After my tenth set of compressions, I felt a weak pulse, stopped, and thanked the Lord.

I scooped Max up in my arms as Nudge and Gazzy returned with two pails of water. (Where they got the pails, I may never know.) I tore off a piece of the "emergency bandage-slash-compress shirt we kept in my backpack, soaked it, and cooled Max's forehead, stroking her hair and humming, more to myself than to her.

_I can be your hero baby_

_I can kiss away the pain_

_I will stand by you forever_

_You can take… my breath away._

I had heard the song in Aeropostale, and it had seemed pointless, but I had memorized it anyways. Now, it seemed like a fitting song to the current situation.

I looked around the campsite, as the flock had fallen silent, jaws on the ground.

"You have a pretty singing voice, Fang," Angel said, smiling. Iggy snickered. _Note to self: kill the blind pyro. _I nodded a thanks, feeling my cheeks grow hot.

I kept Max close to me, in case she went into cardiac arrest again, but after a while, (a while being exactly five hours, eight minutes, and forty-seven seconds later, not that I counted) Max stirred.

"F-fang?" She shivered, and I hugged her close. I felt her arms weakly hug me back. Oh, God, I really loved her.

And after our experience, I was sure she felt the same.

**YAY!!!!!!!!**

**Should I end it here?**

**Press the green button!!!!!**

**xx Lys**


	8. flying

**Okay, guys, CHILL.**

**I know you need an AED to revive people.**

**It just… slipped my mind :D**

**Grrr… this chapter is so short. But the ending was like totally necessary. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride. (Woah, really?)**

**This was a really nice chapter to write… I've always wanted to write about heaven. **

**Max POV**

I was flying. But I was not flapping my wings.

I felt no pain. I landed near a crystal clear lake and looked at my reflection, which nearly took my breath away.

I was beautiful. I wished I could be here, forever, and ever, and ever…

But a hand was tugging on mine, begging me to come back, softly whispering…

_Max…_

_I need you. Max…_

I felt strong hands on my chest, pumping my heart.

I felt lips on my own, though we were not kissing…

I felt calloused fingers, gently rubbing my hands, rocking me back and forth, back and forth…

I heard a song, jerking me back to reality, and thoughts in my head that were not mine…

_Max, if you can hear me, open your eyes. Fang is getting sad._

Maximum, your flock needs you. The world needs you.

I flew away from the lake, sadly, and back to the cold, harsh world of reality.

I woke up in Fang's arms.

"F-fang?" I was still so cold…

Fang cradled me as the rest of the flock slept, and we looked at the stars, Iggy soon joining us.

The three of us sat in silence, watching the sunrise, growing tired, but not sleeping…

In the early morning, Angel sat next to me, and I ran my fingers through her tangled hair. Nudge came, but I shushed her gently and continued to watch the sun move across the sky, slowly…

Gazzy came too, but he grew impatient, and left with Iggy, writing a bomb plan on one of our precious pieces of paper.

Slowly, the flock left, leaving Fang and me in our mini-paradise.

But all happiness must snap back to reality, as I found out when I saw a swarm of Flyboys heading our way.

The leader in me snapped to attention. "Guys? We got a little flying robot problem here."

And just like that, as all happy things in life do, my moment with Fang was over.


	9. half the chapter is bold dangit

**Heh. It's been a while.**

**I still luffles you!!!**

**xx lys**

**Oh, and this chapter is dedicated to my cousin who has been absolutely BEGGING for me to use his idea.**

"**Guys!" I yelled. "Pack up!"**

**All six of us, even little Angel, had packs rolled up and stuffed into backpacks in seconds.**

**I never said I didn't love my flock, did I?**

**The Flyboys came at us, surprisingly not poised for attack. The robot in front was the biggest, and obviously the leader. He/It made a very unconvincing cough, then started to speak.**

"**WE COME IN PEACE." Yeah right. When dogs fly—oh wait, they do.**

**The robot started rambling about whatever the crap robots ramble about, then I heard Gazzy yelp. I whirled around in a record breaking .2 seconds as I saw a Flyboy that had snuck around back pulling the BIGGEST LOOKING NEEDLE IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD out of Gazzy's arm.. I mean, take an image of what you think is a "big" needle then multiply by 10. Yeah. It was that bad. Next to me I saw signs of emotion seeping out of Fang's mask. Oh, man. The only person who is more afraid of needles than me--**

**Is Fang. (credits to Hiwatari-Angel-15 on that one. Check out "Bloodlust.")**

**Surprisingly, the Flyboys turned and left. What the *censored***

**Well, it seems my life just gets weirder and weirder.**

**I went to check on Gazzy, see if he was alright. Damn, he's had it tough. First the man-of-war sting, (whoops, sorry Gabe. Idk if you're there yet :D) now this. He seemed fine, though. My eight-year-old survivor.**

"**You okay?" I asked. I mean, we've had worse. But I still didn't know what was up with the needle though. It was weird, but the Gasman's not dead yet, which is usually the best I can hope for.**

**I sighed. This has been the longest day ever. (A/N no, I didn't forget about Max and Fang's little problem in the hotel. Can you believe it's only been a DAY?!)**

It was starting to get dark, so we did a U and A and flew back to that hotel where me and Fang were rooming. It had seemed like so long since I had been in the mall shopping for bras. I'd definitely had a long day...

We landed, made a big show about flouncing out of this huge van in the parking lot, and entered the hotel.

As we took the elevator (ugh, those things make me shifty) Gazzy started coughing violently, and the Nudge channel took over.

"OMG Gazzy are you okay? Because I was thinking if you're not okay then we can go back down to the ground floor and get some ice cream because that always helps your throat, I think, and ice cream sounds really good because I'm really hungry is anyone else hungry?" By the time she was done I had completed five successful eye-rolls and was halfway through my sixth, smiling triumphantly, only to find I had been beaten by Fang, who held up an eight. Gah.

"I'm fine, Nudge, dammit." Gazzy groaned.

"Gazzy, watch the language," I warned him sternly.

He pouted. "You and Fang do it _all the time._ Why can't I?"

I have to admit, that got a laugh out of me.

We arrived on our floor and went to our separate rooms, which were all connected. I took a deep breath. Time to face reality and the fact that me and Fang were sleeping together. Ugh.

Suddenly, the bestest idea ever struck me. We didn't have to share a bed!

"Wahoo!" I pumped my fist. "Fang, I'll just sleep on the floor, kay? You know, to prevent... awkwardness." I smiled, well, _awkwardly._

We arrived on the seventh floor, and I finally set my bags down on the floor, changing into an old Led Zeppelin t-shirt and plaid pajamas without even bothering to go into the bathroom. Fang and I, we're cool about that. At least I _think _we are.

I brushed my teeth using the handy-dandy complimentary hotel supplies and flopped down onto the nice, comfortable floor. (Hey, it's better than dirt. Beggars can't be choosers.) I looked up to see Fang setting his black iPod on the dresser. (we got it for free because the only song it plays is—wait for it—Headstrong by Trapt. Just my luck.) He leaned over the bed and looked expectantly at me. I kissed Fang goodnight, glad I had remembered to brush my teeth.

When I pulled away after several heavy seconds, I saw Fang was smiling. Like, his teeth were showing. That's a first. I went to sleep happily, but it was short-lived, seeing as I woke in the middle of the night to a crash and a low, threatening growl.

YEAHH!!!


	10. Always the hero

**YEEHAAAW!!!!!**

**sorry, had a random southerner moment there. (yes, I have the right to say that, i'm from tennessee. :D)**

**I don't own Maximum Ride... derr.**

**Max POV  
**

Fang leapt out of bed so loudly, I actually _bounced_ on the carpet. Like, three inches. I stood up quickly and tried running out the door, remembering at the last second that you _pull_ this door. (All I'm gonna say is "Ouch." Okay, fine, and a couple cuss words.)

We rushed into Iggy and Gazzy's room, where the sound was coming from.

"What the hell is going on?" Iggy sounded strained. "OH MY GOD THAT HURT!!"

Fang almost barreled down the door, and the first thing I saw was a very pissed-off Iggy with blood running down his arm and... an Eraser?? How did it get in? And where the _hell _was Gazzy?

It all clicked in the next half second.

Gazzy was an Eraser.

I froze for two seconds, but that two seconds was too long.

The Eraser—Gazzy—growled, sniffed, and lunged.

*

I shot out of bed, gasping and punching air.

Damn it, it was a _dream. _FML.

"Whoa there, tiger." Fang said beside me.

There was something _very wrong_ with that sentence. Fang was _next to me._

I didn't know it was possible, but things got a lot more awkward.

"Fang? What the crap?"

"You were having a bad dream," he muttered almost imperceptibly, "and I was thinking about yesterday. You could've let me sleep on the floor, I wouldn't have cared. God, Max, you don't have to be the tough one all the time, I'm getting sick of it." Fang's tone had slowly rose higher and higher until he was full-out yelling at me.

"What the heck? You think you're gonna be all super and save the day all the time? Do you really think that's the biggest problem out there right now? You wanna sleep on the floor, sure, whatever. You do your own thing, whatever. But I REALLY CAN'T TAKE ANY OF YOUR CRAP RIGHT NOW!!"

"SHUT UP!" He poked me square in the chest, which was the last straw.

"YOU SHUT UP!"

"Oh yeah, MAKE ME!" We had been slowly leaning toward each other as we got more aggravated, and to my horror, I found myself throwing my arms around Fang and kissing him hungrily. Now where did _that _come from? We kissed for a while, occasionally mumbling things to each other as we gulped for air.

"Don't have to be... the hero."

"What... if I want to be... ever think of that."

"I'm... sorry." We both said it under our breath at the same time, which is surprising because neither of us are really big on apologies. And before I knew it, me, the almighty Maximum Ride, broke down in Fang's arms, and cried.

**Ugh, this chapter is short and bad.**

**REVIEW PLEASE!!! :D**

**xx lys**


	11. SUPER BOWL!

**So who enjoyed/is still enjoying the Super Bowl? :D**

**As of right now, it's not over yet...**

**And that means I'm posting this right as it happens.**

*****

**Max POV**

I woke up in the morning feeling like P. Diddy. (Pun intended.)

"Got my glasses, I'm out the door, I'm gonna hit this city." Nudge trilled without even looking up.

"Before I leave, brush my teeth with a bottle of jack." Iggy joined in.

"`Cause when I leave for the night I AIN'T COMIN BACK!" The rest of the flock joined in and we all burst out laughing.

We checked out of the hotel, having agreed that it was safer to stay for only a day at a time. My mind was still reeling from what had happened earlier today. Call it PMS or whatever.

That night, we crashed at my mom's house, and Ella gave us all bear hugs. (I noticed Iggy's hug was about three seconds longer... I'd have to look into that.)

It took me about a minute to realize that tonight was Super Bowl night. (The overload of decorations and the GO SAINTS banner helped too.) Fang huffed a little less-than-discreetly, as we were all die-hard Colts fans. I smiled a little as I realized Super Bowl Sunday was probably the best time to scarf down twelve hundred calories without even blinking an eye.

Before I knew it, it was game time, and the six of us and Total plopped down on the couch with our own pint of ice cream.

By halftime, the Saints were winning 13-10 and I was practically grinding my teeth in horror... But OHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! TOUCHDOWN BY MANNING!!!!!!! AND AN EXTRA POINT!!! Colts were ahead 13-17!!! (I noticed Fang had very "subtly" draped his arm across my shoulders, doing that yawn-thing that totally doesn't work.) I was hopping up and down and cheering like an idiot when Ella shot me the Glare of Destiny © (dedication to anyone who knows where that's from :D) which is totally _Fang's_ thing.... then WTF?! Where did those 3 points come from New Orleans??? GAH!!! Ella smirked at me. **(sorry you guys that don't want another football summary... whoops.)**

Three minutes into the fourth quarter after Malcolm Jenkins being a bitch (do I have the right to call pro football players bitches? I dunno.) and a failed field goal attempt, things were not really on our side, though thankfully the Saints were still trailing by one. I watched the ads blankly and whooped when Tim Tebow and his mother took over the screen. (GO GATORS!!!) My pint of chocolate almond swirl ice cream was dwindling, and I stole some of Fang's when he wasn't looking, still bitter about how he got first dibs on mint chocolate chip.

OH NO!!! TOUCHDOWN BY THE SAINTS!!! Ooooh... the refs... challenge... DAMN IT!! If only the Saints had abnormally short arms...

Crap.

I just busted out laughing, and now Fang is staring at me. *mental facepalm*

I've been thinking, if only I was a football player... The safety would go in for a tackle, and FWOOSH!! I'm above him. That's complete awesomesauce. But back on track, we're still behind.

The ads came on once again, and it was the infamous Taco Bell rap. We all joined in at the end:

"The box that rocks `cause it's only five bucks! YEAH!!!"

A pass from Manning and OHH!!! INTERCEPTED!!! An attempted tackle, miss. The guy kept running. TOUCHDOWN!!! Shit. A ND they got the extra point. FML. I felt like I might spontaneously combust. And worse, I think I just saw Ella making out with Iggy from the corner of my eye, and I wondered how on Earth Iggy trusts people, seeing as a guy could come and kiss him and he wouldn't be able to tell...

Gazzy was waving a hand in front of my face. "Earth to Ma-ax...."

"Humnuh," I said, clearly because I have a way with words.

"The Saints are ahead! GAAAAHH!!!" Gazzy broke down, and I swear I've never seen anyone else cry just because their team was losing 31-17 with, like, two minutes on the clock. Pfft, I'm not about to strangle anybody... _Not at all. _If life had emoticons, this would be mine right about now-- :/

Many attempted plays by the Colts, lots of interceptions, and a lot of muttered cussing later, Manning called a timeout with a minute and thirty-four left in the game. Gah.

NOOOOOOO!!!!!!! SAINTS WIN!!!

Poopie. I think even Fang's eyes were a little shinier than usual.

Wait, _what?_ My mind went on instant rewind.

Iggy... and _Ella?_

God, I think I'm gonna puke.

And I think Nudge might die.

Ah, the funness of young love...

**:D**

**yay saints!!!**


	12. Filler Chapter

**Here is another chapter just for you!**

**Does anyone know if I have to put the disclaimer [which clearly states that I don't own Maximum Ride] in every chapter?**

**Whatever.**

**Lys out**

*****

**Max POV**

And this is why, three days later, I am sitting on the couch with Nudge, massaging the spot in between her wings and repeating "Shh" and "It's okay" over and over. Ugh. Too many _emotions._ Angel, if you could please show up in three, two, one.

"Hi Max!" Her cute little face, framed in golden ringlets, peeked around the edge of the doorframe.

Whoa. Lots of adjectives. Can you tell I've been reading Twilight? :D

"Hey, sweetie," I replied. "Can you, uh, take over here?" She nodded cheerfully and apparently sent Nudge some calming beach images.

Soon, Gazzy joined Angel on the couch and made the most damn convincing ocean sounds ever. They were so calming, I swear I might just drop off...

*

I woke up in my bed. WTF? I shot up and saw...

Fang. I looked at the clock-

7:23 am. What was I doing up at 7 in the morning? More importantly, what was _Fang_ doing, sitting on my bed at this ungodly hour? _Not that I really wanted him to leave..._

"What the crap are you doing sitting at the foot of my bed, you creeper?" _Oh, man, don't leave, I'm sorry, don't leave... _WHY AM I FREQUENTLY UPSET WITH FANG? GAHH!

Fang turned crimson and let his mask slip a little. "I enjoy watching you sleep."

"Uh... why?" _I didn't mean to sound sarcastic, forgivemeforgivemeforgiveme..._

"You look calm." Leave it to Fang to sum up what would have come out of my mouth as a whole paragraph into three words.

And I loved that about him.

"Earth to Max!"

"Yeah, what, huh." I responded, shaken out of my trance, with my usual suavity. *_Mental facepalm*_

"I was _saying,_ do you wanna grab some breakfast or something." I searched Fang's face for anger, annoyance, or _heck, _any emotion at all, but found nothing.

"Mkay, sure." _Bacon sounds good right about now. Wow, I get sidetracked a lot._

"Fang?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you say something about ponies?"

"Uhh..."

_*_

**Fang POV**

Max seemed a little off today. I wondered what she was thinking about.

I knew _I_ was definitely thinking about _food._ I was _starving._

"Yo, Max." No response.

"Max?"

"MAX."

"There are pink ponies outside dancing in the pool." Nothing.

"Earth to Max!"

"Yeah, what, huh." _Smooth._

"I was _saying, _do you wanna grab some breakfast or something." My tone came off harder than it should have. Crap it.

"Mkay, sure." It's good Max isn't a very wordy person, otherwise it would be impossible to keep up. Instead of conversations, we seemed to share long, lingering looks...

"Fang?"

"Yeah?" _Try to say more than one word next time..._

"Did you say something about ponies?"

"Uhh..." Maybe she _was _listening, after all.

We filed into the kitchen, all of the flock (minus Nudge, who would probably take about three more hours to dazzle us with her presence) having joined us. The flock and Dr M. sat down, my subconscious noting that there was an extra seat, hoping against hope that it wasn't for Total. (These are the times I deeply regret letting Angel keep him.)

_Hey!_

Oops.

There was a loud, familiar knock on the door. Five loud knocks, two soft, sharp ones. _Please, let it be a coincidence... _I begged. I looked around the table and saw that the flock (minus Dr. M, who just looked bewildered) was doing the same.

After a long, heavy silence, I mumbled "I'll get it."

I walked slowly to the door, taking my time, opening the door with a _creak, _and confirming our worst fears...

Jeb.

He walked in without an invitation, hanging up his coat and propping his umbrella against the wall. (Seriously, Jeb, it's not even raining outside, why do you have an umbrella? [I shall now call it a man-parasol.] And even if it _were _raining, he should've just had grown some balls and taken it. [That sentence was totally inappropriate and unnecessary. Come to think of it, this entire paragraph is totally inappropriate and unnecessary. I'll just shut up now.])

"Val?" he said, his faint British accent that came from who-knows where more distinct than usual, something that only happened when he was deeply stressed. I braced myself for the worst.

"I just got an anonymous fax. They want the flock to rendezvous at the Grand Canyon- and they say it's important. I want you all to--" He trailed off as Nudge came in, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"What's going on? Oh-Jeb. Awk-WARD!"

_Awkward _is right.

And we didn't even get to eat our breakfast.

What a crappy way to start the day.

**(Let me just say now, I have _no _idea where this is going to go. :D)**


	13. Were we set up?

**Read my oneshot.**

**All im gonna say. :D**

*****

**Max POV**

Well, honestly, when Jeb said the Grand Canyon, the first thing _I_ thought of was a nice, high-up, isolated ledge, me and Fang, _alone..._

_Get a room._

Whoops. Sorry, Ange.

_S'okay, Fang was doing it too. _A cheeky smile from my baby, and a mental fist-pump from me.

"Max, you in?" I glanced at Jeb scornfully, sniffed, and spoke. (SSSSSS!)

"Sure. Whatever."

We flew _(alone—_I'd forced Jeb to stay at Mom's) to the Grand Canyon, and I _totally_ saw the grand-ness. But when we arrived, something was off.

"Max?" Fang looked at me, one of his eyebrows ever so slightly raised.

"Yeah?" I'd been concentrating on the depth of Fang's eyes, the well-concealed emotions in them...

"There's, uh, no one here." Nudge was rubbing the inside of her forearm, something she did when she was thinking, when a silhouette stepped out of the shadows.

Anne.

"Hi, fancy seeing you here," she said conversationally. Only I wasn't in the mood for conversations.

Not with _her._

The woman who had betrayed us all, who had tried to deceive me more than once, was back.

"No. Not fancy. What the crap was with that 'taking us in' shit? And that 'family' crap?" I think I just heard Fang's longest sentence.

"Fang, _language,_" I said under my breath, though that obviously wasn't the biggest issue right now.

"Yeah!" Gazzy said, angry now. Although Anne's betrayal had hurt us all, it was the kids that had really been hurt and ashamed for believing what was too good to be true. Fang, Iggy, and I had been hurt too, but we'd been hurt too many times for this to really matter.

So we retreated into our shells of permanent sarcasm.

"I see this is going downhill, and I know you won't go quietly, so I arranged for my _friends_ to be here." Anne snapped her fingers in a totally badass way that a person like her doesn't deserve.

And about a hundred and fifty M-Geeks jumped at us.

Crap.

*

About ten minutes, lots of charred sizzling, a couple bruises, a jammed finger and some Jell-o later, (haha, remember when I said he could make dental floss and Jell-o explode? Turns out, he also needs a sparkler from the gift shop) we could finally leave, thankfully the Canyon was past closing when we had arrived. Gazzy and Iggy high-fived.

"That was _killer!!!!!_"

"AWESOME!" Ig agreed. A few days ago I finally realized _igneous_ (Iggy for short) means "fire" in Latin.

FAIL.

I reached into Fang's jet-black backpack and pulled out our ripped-and-torn-in-every-way tourniquet-slash-bandage-slash-emergency-shirt, and wrapped my throbbing finger.

"You okay?" Fang swooped in a circle around me and spun me around. I felt all tingly within his strong, warm, battle-worn arms. He kissed me on the cheek, but I turned my head slightly so that he would get me on the lips, and let me just say, I have _no _chance of getting another kiss as good as this one.

Fang's lips were just like Fang himself-dark, sweet, mysterious, full of suppressed emotion.

Mmm...

I'm in heaven.

Gazzy wrinkled his nose in confusion. "Why do the older kids like kissing so much? Like, Max and Fang do it _all the time, _and Ella and Iggy did during the Super Bowl..." He trailed off.

"Yeah!" Nudge agreed.

"Should we try it?" Gazzy suggested mildly.

"Uh, sure."

Gasser and Nudge squeezed their eyes shut and kissed.

"GROSS!"

"EWWWWW...." Gazzy squinched his eyes shut. "that was nasty."

The rest of us all laughed, and I felt like this was a perfect Polaroid moment.

*

The rest of the flight back home was uneventful, with the climax being Gazzy singing "Imma Be" just like will. and farting rhythmically. (Can you say _gross?_)

I let go of Fang's hand and unlocked the door to Mom's, yelling, "Jeb, you freak, you set us up, what the--"

What the _**crap.**_

Couch.

Jeb.

Mom.

This is _totally NASTY._

I'm scarred for life.

*****

**Niggy or Eggy?**

*****

**Don't use your imagination (look at me, destroying dreams) because they were NOT having sex!**

**Just making out...**

**I think.**

**Haha,**

**xx lys**


	14. The great outdoors

**THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO _THE CIRCUS._**

**TC, go you for reading diary of a lovesick mutant!**

**(my all-time favorite story, btw!)**

**this chapter is also dedicated to Surreptitiously Anonymous, whose stories I LOVE and who reviewed my oneshot without me even noticing.**

**I feel so special.**

**xx**

**lys**

**Oh, and all you Hunger Games fans, read my new HG FF, which also sucks! :D :D**

**Pahaha.**

**Just kidding. I think.**

*****

**Fang POV**

Yuck.

Gross.

Nasty, and every other synonym you can think of.

I mean, watching teenagers make out is slightly gross (with the exception of... well, you know.)

But watching ADULTS....

My respect for Jeb just dropped from all-time-low to none.

Because, seriously, that was SICKO.

Have I gotten my point across yet?

Nudge broke the silence. (No surprise there.)

"Ew gross nasty sick! Uh, Jeb, Dr. M, we know this is your house and all, but really? Did you really lure us away from the house and have us fight a hundred and fifty dumb-bots, which we totally pulverized, at least Gazzy did, don't yell at him because you know it's really your own fault... just so that you could stay home and _kiss?_ Well, kissing is nasty. At least _I _know that you're not supposed to look like you're eating each other's faces off, I've seen Max and Fang do it the _right _way where it looks all romantic and stuff--"

"Nudge," I said quietly. Well really, everything I say, I say quietly.

Whatever. Nudge was really pushing it there with the make-out comment.

But, I have to say it's very true.

Max and I _do _kiss awesomely.

We _do._

Really.

Seriously.

Don't we?

*****

**Max POV**

Ugh.

I felt bile rising to my throat at the sight of my mom-my freaking MOM- making out with Jeb.

Jeb!

Really?

UGHHH.

Yick.

Nudge started one of her inevitable rants, which I managed to successfully tune out.

After a long period of buzzing in my ears, I couldn't take it anymore.

"--I've seen Max and Fang do it the _right _way where it looks all romantic and stuff--"

I'm still kinda scared to find out what she was saying, and even more so when I looked at Fang, who flushed beet red when he noticed my eyes on his, and he started to slowly blend in with the surrounding walls.

"Nudge," he said, his voice dangerously low in that badass-Fang tone.

Seriously, it was so fricking badass.

That's my guy. :)

Finally, my mom jumped off the couch, re-buttoned her shirt, ran her fingers through her hair, and glanced at the six of us glaring daggers at her.

"Well. I didn't think you'd be back this... early."

"I bet you didn't," I muttered in my level-10 frigid-tone. "Screw you." I said it quietly enough that Dr. M- I can't _stand _to even call her my own mother anymore -couldn't hear me, but loud enough that the flock gave a snicker in unison.

I sighed contentedly.

Sometimes, we are _so _badass.

*****

The next day, Dr. M and Jeb, who were _clearly _holding hands under the table "covertly," had an announcement.

They were leaving. Thank God.

It was because of the fact that we all really, really, REALLY hate her now for doing what she did yesterday, I guess. Maybe they just wanted some time alone.

HAH. PSHYEAH RIGHT.

Dr. M announced the ground rules- no vandalism (not likely) do the laundry (not possible) and that Ella would be staying at an aunt's house for her own safety.

Because, apparently, we "aren't the most mature group of children."

No freaking duh, Captain OBVIOUS.

So when they left, we all realized that "rules" aren't the best things to give us, and an unanimous decision was made-

We were leaving.

Out into the nice, clean forest,

"The outdoors and the sea and the flowers..." I put on my best pleading voice.

"And the spiders and the bugs and the dirt..." Fang smirked at me and I shot him a glare. **(dedications up for grabs, where are those last two quotes from?)**

I rolled my eyes while Iggy got our backpacks and prepared some traveling food.

I was kinda glad, too... Our lives were sorta getting... *gasp* _normal..._

And if there's one thing I can't stand, it's Jeb.

I mean, _normality._

I just realized, sometimes I get into the habit of getting off track...

Right now, I really want an omelet for breakfast...

Wait, what were we talking about again?


	15. Love Triangle

**YAHOO!**

**Lys :)**

*****

**Max POV**

Well, we were _gonna _leave the next day, but, seriously, Iggy didn't want to leave his Gourmet Cooking Set at home, Nudge reminded me that there was no cell signal in the wilderness, and Angel alerted me about plaque, which apparently is that fuzzy stuff that builds up in your teeth, and she told me that you have to _floss _daily to get it out.

So, basically, we weren't going.

And there was the fact that Gazzy got the stomach flu, and let me just say that if we were in the wild and Mr. Chu or some other business geek found us, we'd be dead meat.

Unless Gazzy barfed on 'em.

That would be super cool.

"Ma-_ax..._" Gasser croaked from his spot on the couch with the trash can conveniently next to him. "I need electrical tape, and some—blurrgh..." EWW.

The good thing about this, though, is that we have the ENTIRE FREAKING HOUSE TO OURSELVES.

I happily sat there for a few minutes considering the inevitable progress on my relationship with Fang, when suddenly I heard a loud "BANG!" and a "DAMN IT!"

"LANGUAGE, IG!" I yelled, less-than-considerately. Gazzy moaned.

"WHO MOVED THE FUCKING DINING TABLE, BECAUSE I THINK I JUST FRACTURED MY TAILBONE ON THE FLOOR!" Iggy was in hysterics.

Well, I dropped him off at the hospital with Nudge, and headed home, because I had left Angel to care for Gazzy, and I was really, _really_ hoping they hadn't trashed anything.

*****

**Iggy POV**

I was bored.

Really, really, super bored.

So I did what all fourteen-or-so blind mutant bird kids do when they're bored-

I made a bomb.

Or, I was _going _to make a bomb. All I needed was that useless Styrofoam apple Dr. M kept on her dining table as a centerpiece. I "carefully" (pff.) ran down the sixteen steps and plopped down sideways on the chair---BOOM. Shit...

"DAMN IT!" I roared, pounding a fist on the floor.

"LANGUAGE, IG!" Aw, come _on._ I have the right to cuss at least once a week, at _least..._

"WHO MOVED THE FUCKING DINING TABLE, BECAUSE I THINK I JUST FRACTURED MY TAILBONE ON THE FLOOR!" I mean, seriously, I've been in pain before, but _damn, _this _hurt._

I heard a deep tread coming down the stairs, jumping the last twelve gracefully. Fang. My "hero."

This day keeps getting more and more bull.

"What happened, Ig?" he said, sounding concerned, and yet, he had a trace of taunting in his voice.

"Nothing, I just stepped on my shoelace while doing man-squats," I replied convincingly.

"Iggy?"

"What?"

"You're barefoot."

"Oh."

"C'mon, let's get you to the ER," he said. "We're probably gonna--"

"You Angeled?" Man, she is _freaky. _**(dedications coming! Anyone know that quote?)**

"HEY!"

Fang told Angel she was gonna take Gazzy, I tuned out for a while, and finally we were at the hospital and the long, agonizing car ride was over. (Did you know it _reeeeally _hurts to sit when you injure your butt bone?)

Nudge held my hand and led me to the ER, where a nice-sounding lady led me into a room and I fell asleep. (Lemme tell you, it's _way _better to fall asleep in your own bed than in a hospital one. Smells too much like the School.)

When I woke up, I felt Nudge sitting on the edge of my bed.

And I smelled fried chicken.

Mmm. Chicken.

"Hey, Ig, you're awake. I thought you were gonna sleep a long time, but it was only like an hour so I guess-" She cleared her throat. "You gonna eat?"

I flung my jaw open. "Feed me," I mumbled, my dignity creeping out the window.

There was a pause, and Nudge finally said, "I'm nodding, Ig." A piece of warm, heavenly chicken was pushed into my mouth. I chewed twice and swallowed.

I felt Nudge lean in close to me, so as to get the chicken into my mouth. Or maybe it's just 'cause I'm that sexy. Probably the latter. Yeah, definitely.

Before I knew what I was doing, I flung my arm around her neck and pressed my mouth against hers, and I realized Nudge was probably grossed out right now. Probably.

But slowly, carefully, she started kissing back. Oh yeah, sexiness meter just went up.

Somehow, Nudge ended up on top of me while we kissed, and maybe that's why I didn't hear the door open until it was too late.

"Hey, Ig, I heard you were in the hospital and HOLY FUCK!"

Ella.

My life just got a _whole _lot more damn complicated.

Screw love.


End file.
